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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/29073687">Bahr Daelheg</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Anxious_Alice_05/pseuds/Anxious_Alice_05'>Anxious_Alice_05</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Gah'toshok Daelha [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Domestic Fluff, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Meet the Family, Pregnancy, Unplanned Pregnancy</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-01-30</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-05-12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-13 09:53:44</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>4,309</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/29073687</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Anxious_Alice_05/pseuds/Anxious_Alice_05</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Cerrebryn and the crew are heading home when more than one surprise falls into their laps.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Dovahkiin | Dragonborn/Ondolemar, Female Dovahkiin | Dragonborn/Ondolemar, Ondolemar (Elder Scrolls)/Original Female Character(s), Revyn Sadri &amp; Original Female Character(s), Teldryn Sero &amp; Original Character(s), Teldryn Sero &amp; Original Female Character(s)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Gah'toshok Daelha [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/2308118</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>5</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Hooks and Eyes</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><ul class="associations">
      <li>For <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/users/StormBinder/gifts">StormBinder</a>.</li>



    </ul></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Ondolemar’s mouth went dry.  “You what?”  The woman across from him shrugged, buckles clicking as she stripped.  “I figured we could meet at Lakeview.  The guest rooms are large enough to house them and a few guards, and we’ll be able to sleep in our own bed that night-”  He cut in, “You invited my parents to our home, without telling me?”  She paused and looked up at him, clad only in her smallclothes, “And you haven’t seen them in forty years.”  He glared at his wife as she settled into the hot spring.  A soft sigh fell from her lips, head tilted back and eyes closed in pleasure.  They had been on the road for a week.</p><p>“You can’t just do these things without me.  My mother is not my father.  She won’t take as kindly to you as he did.”  He slipped in opposite Cerrebryn, still irritated.  “If she gets out of hand, I’ll take care of it.”  A harsh sigh left Ondolemar’s nose as he pinched the bridge, “Truly, dearest?  What will you do, throw my mother out of the house?  Lock her in the cellar?”  A shiver ran through the woman as her eyes snapped open, “O-Ondolemar, I-I’d like to m-meet your p-p-parents.”  Her teeth chattered despite the spring’s warmth, a telltale sign she was set off.  It would happen sometimes if someone yelled or argued.  Even things that weren’t malicious could cause that switch to flip.  Abruptly, her blood would become ice and she would shake.  Consciously, Cerrebryn was aware that she was safe, but for some reason, her body wasn’t.</p><p>She took a few deep breaths, trying to clamp down on the shaking.  It didn’t work of course.  Her head twitched to the side a few times.  Abruptly, something warm wrapped about her shoulder.  The shivering continued, but it slowed with his touch.  “I-I’m sorry.”  “D-Don’t be, n-not your fault.”  “Mother is a...special woman.  I don’t want her to hurt you.”  She laughed bleakly, “I’ve f-f-fought Al-Alduin, Miraak, the Th-Thalmor.  Love, y-you don’t have to p-protect me.”  He dropped a kiss to the top of her head, “You’re mistaken, dearest.  I don’t want to, I need to.  The Empire and the Blades and anyone else who needs saving in this Auriel-forsaken province has put you through the wringer.”  Cerrebryn sighed into his chest, the warm skin soothing, “H-have I ever told you how m-much I love y-you?”  Ondolemar pulled his wife into his lap, savoring the feeling, “On occasion.”</p><p>Cerrebryn woke early the next day in a cold sweat.  The nightmare was slowly slipping from her mind, but she was sure the Thalmor had been involved.  Ondolemar’s face was nestled into her neck, nose skimming her ear softly.  The night sounds surrounded her, almost lulling the woman back to sleep.  Abruptly, something <em>fluttered</em>.  Assuming it was just her imagination, Cerrebryn rolled into her husband’s chest.  But then, it happened again.  Gasping lightly, she remembered what her mother had once said about “the quickening''.  Her time was running short, she’d have to tell him soon.  Ondolemar stirred beside her, muttering a string of incomprehensible Aldmeri.  She peppered his face and neck with kisses, <em>“Daelha, druha.”</em>  Despite her instruction, his eyes slowly opened, the green still clouded with sleep.  “Mmmmm, my favorite way to wake up...”  His arms tightened around her midsection, holding both his wife and their unborn child.  “Ohn bahris valsua,” she sighed.  He throatily laughed, “I have many talents, dear.  I just don’t possess that one anymore.”  Neither of them could sleep after that, wrapped up in each other.  Just as the sun crested the horizon that fluttering returned.</p><p>Cerrebryn packed up camp while Ondolemar stood guard.  Revyn had wanted to stay in Windhelm the previous night to pack and they left Teldryn behind to escort him.  The steam was warm in the chilled morning.  She rolled up the bedrolls, doused the coals, and dismantled the tent before rubbing her aching back.  Ah, the joys of pregnancy.  Ondolemar took the tent from her, leaving the cook pot and furs.  She’d load those off onto Teldryn and her cousin later.</p><p>The sky above was a deep, beautiful blue.  Dollops of clouds floated on invisible currents as they waited.  She dug an apple out of her pack, “Want one?”  He grunted in answer, lost in Daughter of the Niben.  Ondolemar read the words as if he was a starved man.  He hadn’t been able to get his hands on any new books for a month and it was showing.  In his opinion, you could only read The Lusty Argonian Maid a few times before succumbing to your natural urges...<em>to murder someone</em>.</p><p>They sat there in companionable silence, eating breakfast and enjoying the morning air before she coughed, getting half his attention.  “Yes, dear?”  Cerrebryn gulped, scared out of her mind, “I have, erm...a confession to make.”  He hummed, spurring her to continue.  “You see, I’m-”  A figure in the distance yelled and they both readied their weapons.  Thankfully, it was just Revyn shouting out his hellos.  Ondolemar snapped his book shut, “Now, what were you saying?”  Shaking her head, she softly said, “Let’s just talk about it later.”  “But if it’s something that bothers you-”  He was silenced with a soft kiss to his throat, as his wife was so short and he so tall that it was the only place she could reach easily, “Daelha, my cousin draws near.  I’ll tell you later, alright?”</p><p>Teldryn spied them and made a gagging sound.  Honestly, he was thankful they kept things <em>(mostly)</em> professional.  They were so discreet while working that he hadn’t known how serious their relationship was until he was dismissed one dreary morning for an entire week.  When they had returned for his services, wedding bands rested on their fingers.  He hadn’t thought the younger Mer had it in him to marry the Dragonborn, but evidently, even <em>he</em> could be wrong on occasion.  Revyn sighed and said lowly, “Itkho lo, daeljuhn, ohn bahr talje’ath eshtik ilu asuhm daeljuha.”  He huffed, “En os bahr ura de.”</p><p>Cerrebryn separated from her husband, holding up the pot and a bedroll at the approaching men, “Tosk adur ohth.”  Her cousin grabbed the fur-lined sack, “Juohn, daeseh hla.”  “Adur ohn bahrbaldif sint zalku, sera?” Teldryn asked.  “Bahrsint daeruhn, bahrtodihf,” the other Dunmer man answered with a laugh.  Ondolemar readjusted his pack and began walking, ready to get home.  His parents would likely be waiting there when they arrived, and he didn’t want his mother to inflict too much damage while they were absent.  The old man barked in laughter and followed his lead.</p><p>The morning was relatively peaceful for everyone in the party except Cerrebryn.  The fluttering had returned and she had been caught a few times with an expression of awe on her face.  Mostly by Revyn, who she was walking with.  Ondolemar was far ahead with Teldryn, scouting the way.  Whenever her cousin caught her, staring into space with a smile on her face he shrugged it off.  Cerrebryn could be an odd duck sometimes.  Unfortunately, it just got worse.</p><p>When they paused in Ivarstead, she hastily made up an excuse about using the bathroom.  Her husband, worried about her almost-confession earlier, followed.  He found her slumped over a bucket behind Wilhelm’s.  The diffused light shown on her hair, contrasting with her paling skin much more obviously.  Rushing to her side, he stared wide-eyed, “Are you alright?”  She said something in Dunmeris, “Os e julemsen.”  Ondolemar tried to puzzle out her meaning, “You are...?”  She coughed, “Sick, daelha.  I think my apple may have been bad.”  He nodded, understanding completely.  Sometimes she would spontaneously get an upset stomach.</p><p>Unluckily for her, Revyn was just around the corner.  He had planned to check on his cousin, worried about her.  When they had walked into town, she had begun turning pale.  Now, he understood why.  But, it seemed like she hadn’t told the man who likely put her in that position?  Unless there was an <em>affair</em>, which would explain her unwillingness to tell him.  He decided to go back to Teldryn, then when they were alone again, confront her.</p><p>The two Dunmer rested on a bridge, waiting for their companions.  Sadri pulled out a book and began budgeting his shop’s next restock on produce.  The other one began whittling a stick, accentuating its natural curves and building from there.  Ondolemar came back to the group, only saying, “She needs a moment.”  He produced his own book from the pack and began reading voraciously.</p><p>Cerrebryn forced herself to stop dry heaving, then leaned back onto the building.  She had forgotten to take the salve Wylandriah gifted her.  It stopped the vomiting almost instantaneously once she started using it, but unfortunately, that also meant it had to be taken <em>daily</em> for the effects to work.  Now, she was hungry.  Revyn had told her they had skipped breakfast to be on time.  She slipped around the side of the inn and headed inside.</p><p>The soft winds brought the smell of seared slaughterfish.  The men assumed it was just an olfactory hallucination and brushed it off until Teldryn looked up.  Their leader was coming down the path with mead and a cloth-wrapped bundle.  “What do you have?”  She looked over her tall stack and grinned, “Honningbrew and slaughterfish for lunch.”  Her cousin glanced up and smiled brightly, “Juohn, daeseh hla.”  Ondolemar opened his pack for her, silently.  He was worried.  Vomiting, the attack last night, and he had a sneaking suspicion she hadn’t translated accurately earlier.  The world (and their conversation) went on around him as he came to the most likely conclusion: she was pregnant with another man’s child.  On the inside, his Auriel-forsaken heart shattered, but on the outside, he looked the same as always.  It was a perk of being a former Thalmor Justiciar; part of his former job was suppressing and compartmentalizing emotions.</p><p>Someone shook his shoulder and he looked up to see her.  Took in her sparkling red eyes and glowing grey skin.  Then, Ondolemar remembered she was likely keeping someone else’s bed warm.  The shrapnel of his heart struck between his ribs, making every breath agonizing.  “Daelha, what’s wrong?”  Her voice, sweet and soft as a bell, sunk the shards deeper.  “N-nothing, just thinking.”  Realizing Sadri and Sero were already across the bridge, he shut his pack and scampered up ahead.  She sighed, unsure what she had done.  He couldn’t have known...right?  Ondolemar was smart as a whip, but aside from the vomiting, she hadn’t given any indication anything other than normal might have been happening.  Deciding he couldn’t have, she started back up the path.</p><p>All was quiet and normal for an hour until Revyn spoke.  “Ku’elm ohn hari’an ot shuhnif?”  She stopped in her tracks, then made sure Teldryn was out of earshot before answering, “Ku’ilm?”  He turned to her, eyes sharp, “Adur ohn julemsen?”  Her face fell, “Ju’okor ohn shogaha?”  Her cousin sighed sharply, “Ku’or harig el?”  “El edur <em>Ondolemar’m</em> muhrjul.”  An eyebrow was raised, “Neif?”  She nodded, <em>“Nei.”</em></p><p>Teldryn glanced backward and saw that the Dragonborn and her cousin had stopped.  Groaning, he slowed.  Ondolemar didn’t look back, continuing his brutal pace.  Luckily, the straggling pair managed to speed up.</p><p>They broke for lunch just outside of Helgen.  The high elf still refused to acknowledge anyone else.  It troubled her.  If Revyn had figured it out, what if he had as well?  Was he blocking her out because the Thalmor’s blood supremacy still had roots in him?  Would he divorce her when they got home and leave with his family to Alinor, never to see her again?  She hoped not, but...the Thalmor indoctrination was so deeply rooted in Altmer society...wait, he had married her, <em>right?</em>  To have and to hold till death parted them?  He had known the consequences when they laid together, <em>no?</em>  Cerrebryn’s mind worked itself to a crisp trying to figure it out.</p><p>Meanwhile, her husband tried to remove the shards of his shredded heart without damaging any vital organs.  Although he wasn’t sure, the theory he’d run across seemed more likely the more he thought about it.  She never hid anything from him, yet now she was.  Combined with her symptoms, it was heartbreakingly obvious.  Cerrebryn was sleeping with another (he couldn’t blame her, she must have run into <em>dozens</em> of attractive people in her travels).  She had fallen pregnant and wasn’t sure what to do.  He decided one thing: If she gave up her lover, he would happily raise the child as his own with her.  Ondolemar couldn’t have left her, even if someone tried to force his hand.  She was more addictive and potent than double-distilled skooma.</p><p>Teldryn and Revyn sat quietly, watching their friends stew.  The latter’s heart was pained to see what was happening.  Although he hadn’t approved of Ondolemar at first, the Altmer was good for and to his cousin.  They fit together like a hook and an eye, latched tightly.  Or, at least they used to, now he was unsure.  And why was Ondolemar suddenly upset?  Had he come to the same conclusion the Dunmer had before Cerrebryn set him straight?  Sero didn’t care about whatever in the hells was happening, instead opting to shape his stick into something lewd.</p><p>After the awkward lunch, they skirted Helgen’s walls and made their way home.  It was quiet but tense.  The party arrived just after two.  There wasn’t anything to suggest any guests had arrived yet, to the Altmer’s unimpressed surprise.</p><p>Cerrebryn stepped inside the threshold, calling out to her children, “I’m home!”  Meeko bounded up, but no one else came.  Ondolemar stomped away to their bedroom, too anguished for pleasantries.  Teldryn plopped down at the dining table, still working on his sculpture.  The Dragonborn walked through the entrance hall and into the dining room, before pausing.  A woman laughed in the kitchen, one she hadn’t heard in <em>a long time</em>.</p><p>Flinging open the doors, Cerrebryn saw her mother, surrounded by all three children, icing sweet rolls.  Her dark hair was graying and wrinkles now lined her brown skin, but she was still the same woman.  She yelped and ran over, nearly crushing the old woman in her embrace, “Alma!”  Her mother laughed, “Julikal, bahr erufi lo.”  “Os bahr nulfi ohn adur iru.  Ju’okor?”  She smiled, “Revyn homa’ag lo.”  His cousin smiled over at him.  Mother nodded at Teldryn, “Hij, ku’or edur oas?”  He spoke up, “Os e Teldryn Sero, Cerrebryn’m molamer.”</p><p>Cerrebryn switched back to Cyrodiliic and turned to the three small people in the room, “Is that any way to greet your mother?”  The children rushed her all at once, talking about everything that had happened in the past week.  Apparently, Bitey had attempted to escape, Lydia and Llewellyn had gotten into an argument about his lute(?  She hadn’t really caught that part), and a giant had attacked (although Lydia managed to scare it off).  “Whoa, whoa, whoa, one at a time.”  Lucia went first, “Mama, mama!  I lost my first tooth!”  Then, Blaise, “I learned a song on the flute!  Pa thought you would like it!”  The grandmother arched her eyebrow, <em>“Pa?”</em>  Her daughter flushed but ignored it.  “Lydia taught me how to kill with a butter knife!”  Sofie finished and Teldryn chuckled.  “Do you know who this woman is?”  The kids shrugged (“she seemed nice,” “we thought Lydia knew,” “she baked with us”) and their mother sighed.  “I...can’t believe it.  You just let <em>a random woman</em> in because she promised to make sweets with you?  We need to have a talk later...this is your gahalma, grandmother.”</p><p>She stepped out of the room as the children crowded around her mother, chattering away.  Cerrebryn glanced upwards, where she could see Ondolemar’s pacing through the gaps in the boards.  “I’ve gotta go deal with...that,” she said to no one in particular.</p><p>He was <em>aching</em>.  How could she do this to him?  The Altmer wanted to curl into a fetal position and never come out.  Then, he heard the clicking of glass against buckles and knew she was there.  Softly, his wife said, “We need to talk.”  Ondolemar huffed and turned to look at her.  The sunlight played along her hair and illuminated her usually dark eyes.  Realizing just how much he truly loved her, he sat.  An empty, no nearly empty, bottle rested in her hands.  At the bottom, three grains of wheat sat, little green stalks reaching upwards out of them.  He sighed, “I thought as much.  <em>Whose</em> is it?”  She blinked, <em>“What?”</em>  “You’re not making this any easier on me.  Who is the child’s father?  <em>Your lover?</em>”  When Cerrebryn just stared at him, Ondolemar forged on, “If you give them up, we-”  He was cut off by a kiss.  A pair of ruby red eyes, brimming with amusement, were an inch from his face, “Ondolemar, daelha, they are <em>ours</em>.  There isn’t a lover.  I haven’t been with anyone else since <em>we first met</em>.”  He frowned, confused, “Why didn’t you tell me when you found out?”  She cringed, but spoke, “I was...afraid.  You’ve told me what the Dominion would do if you were still with them.  I was scared that...”  Ondolemar reached out, and she slid onto his lap, “No, no, no, I would never force you to do that.  If you’re willing to give me such a gift, I’ll accept it with open arms.”</p><p>Cerrebryn threaded her fingers through his hair, “You’re a good man, Ondolemar.”  He sighed and leaned into her hands, “Never going to change your mind on that count, hm?”  Her kiss was sweet and sticky as honey, “Nope.  I’m afraid you’ll be stuck with me.”  He growled against her lips, <em>“Good.”</em></p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>For StormBinder: Sorry if you didn't want to be tagged in this, but I thought you might enjoy seeing more of them as a pairing.  Apologies for being so awkward, but anyway, hope you like it!</p><p>Dunmeris: https://casualscrolls.fandom.com/wiki/Dunmeri_language<br/>I hope you enjoy this, it was fun for me to write!  I'm a big nerd for fluff and like pregnancy/family fluff is my shit.<br/>Please leave a comment if you'd like translations of the Dunmeris, I can totally provide rough ones!<br/>Thanks for non-refundable minutes of your life.<br/>You are loved, stay safe, sending hugs,<br/>-Alice</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. New Arrivals</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Some new arrivals show up</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Cerrebryn’s mother slipped in, expecting her daughter to be unpacking after her travels.  Instead, she found something more than a bit surprising.  A small shrine was resting on a side table.  Lockpicks surrounded the woman and her ravens.  The Dragonborn was kneeling in front of her, whispering invocations and praises.  However, the strangest thing was right next to her.  An Altmer was resting in a chair beside the door absorbed in a book.  The older woman yelped, he leapt up, and her daughter turned.</p><p>The man managed to grind out a, “Who are you?”  She spoke around a dagger’s tip, “Julikal, ku’or edur isk ekilam bahrgui?”  Cerrebryn stumbled her way across the room, “Ondolemar, stop!  That’s my mother!”  He raised a brow at her but sheathed the weapon.  His wife came to a stop next to him, “Oas edur yi daelekil.”  Her mother’s jaw fell to the floor, “Ku’ilm?!  Ku’elm?!”  He was utterly lost, but thankfully his better half wasn’t, “Alnahn cahn calhnsaan.”  The short woman drew her new-found son into a bear hug, making his bones groan at the strain.  “You’re...crushing...me...”  She pulled back, grinning widely.  He could see where Cerrebryn had gotten her smile.  “Ku’ilm edur ohm ammu?”</p><p>Ondolemar looked over his shoulder at his wife.  They had been working on his Dunmeris, but it was shaky at best.  Thankfully she realized why he was hesitating, “Alma, oas bahr dahrdid iam hudilk.”  She sighed, then spoke again, “What is your name?”  “Ondolemar.”  Nodding and letting go, the older woman smiled, “I am former Lady Nueleth Dawnvale.  My daughter neglected to tell me of your existence.”  He turned and sharply said, “You didn’t tell your mother about your wedding?”  She shrugged, “Forty years.”  Her regal mother looped an arm through his, “Now, we’ll leave her to her worship.  I want to hear everything...”  The voices faded as they made their way back to the kitchen.  Cerrebryn stood there, grinning like an idiot until she remembered what she had been doing, and turned back to Nocturnal’s altar.</p><p>An hour later</p><p>Dinner was packed.  Lydia and Llewellyn were still seated at the table’s head, but everyone else was squished in.  The meal was generous, wine and conversation flowing freely.  Dunmeris hummed a constant vibrant undertone.  “Jikhi lo as narum?”  Ondolemar allowed himself a small smile, looking over the little patchwork family with content.  He remembered a time, not long ago, when he had been lonely and bigoted in that craggy, wretch of a city.  The Justiciar had longed for white sand beaches and mellowed wine.  But, two years after his deployment had started, she had, quite literally, fallen into his life.  Soon, he was taking her to Elenwen’s ball.  Then, he had become her children’s “Pa.”  And now, well...</p><p>Ondolemar snapped out of it when a soft hand abruptly brushed against his arm.  Blinking and looking around, he realized everyone was staring.  “What?”  Teldryn made a face, and gestured at his face, “Something is wrong with your face, bruv.”  He tilted his head, “No, wait, is that...maybe?”  Revyn nodded sagely, “I believe it is.”  A blush dusted itself across his cheeks and ears, “Wh-what is it?”  Lucia grinned brightly, “You smiled!”  His face dropped into a grimace and she groaned.  “Paaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa...”  He shook his head, “I’m afraid that was the only smile any...well, most of you, will get.”</p><p>Nueleth spoke up, snowberry wine tinting her lips, “Most of us?  Who is the lucky soul, Ondolemar?”  His eyes darted over to his wife and her smile was sweet as moon sugar.  Then, he looked at the dog, “To be perfectly forthcoming, Meeko.  I simply can’t get enough of the hairy beast.”  Cerrebryn laughed, “And here I was thinking you despised him.”  Glancing down, he grimaced at the animal’s wet maw, “Your hound does have a certain...charm.”  Sophie frowned, “Pa, Meeko isn’t Mama’s pet, he’s a member of the family.  Just like Akhtar and Bitey are!”  Ondolemar nodded sagely, “Ah right, my apologies.  It seems I took flight of my senses.”</p><p>Abruptly, there was a knock at the door.  Lydia, being steward, stood to get it, before being intercepted by Cerrebryn.  “Mother, would you take the children to their room?”  Nueleth gathered her grandchildren, but gave her a look ensuring there would be questions later.  Ondolemar shepherded Lydia, Llewellyn, Revyn, and Teldryn out as well, worried that the person at the door might be his mother, and that she would subject any non-elven family members present to abuse.  Finally, it was just him and her at the door.</p><p>“Are you ready?”  Ondolemar truly felt like vomiting, but he pushed down that urge in favor of a confident smile, “With you at my side?  I could face the wrath of the Empire.”  Cerrebryn pulled him down into a soft kiss, adoring her husband.  She knew he was nervous, she knew he was about ready to get on a horse and ride in the opposite direction as fast as possible.  Yet he stood beside her, ready to fight an onslaught from his mother with her.  What had she done to deserve him?  He felt much the same, head over heels for someone who would stand by him, even though his relatives were malicious to anyone who wasn’t Altmer, even though he had been the same way in recent memory.  It warmed him, almost to the point of combustion.</p><p>Another sharp, pointed knock broke them apart.  Ondolemar shook off the nerves and steeled his resolve before opening the door.  Two women stood on the stoop.  The taller looked remarkably like him, down to the bow of her lips.  Tension hung in the air as both couples sized each other, but the Altmer woman pounced on her brother before any rash action could be taken.  “ζβΦ, ζλ’ΦβςΩ βςΦ ζβ.”  He pulled back, shock apparent, “Vallinya?  βςΩ?”  Cerrebryn coughed loudly, prompting the pair to split.</p><p>“Cerrebryn, my sister Vallinya.”  The woman nearly glowed in the golden sunlight.  Multiple golden hoops hung from each ear, framing her face and making the large scars on it stand out.  She had golden hair, which was twisted up into a simple bun.  Vallinya smiled and spoke, “El edur juli prokid ohl.  Yi daesohn dahrdig am ohl eshtik.”  The Dunmer gawked, “Ohn dahrdi Dunmeris?”  She nodded, “Os viye’ag luvahr as Urshilaku’m khan.”</p><p>The other woman turned to her husband and smiled sharply, “Ondolemar, you’ve had a sister this entire time?  One you’ve been corresponding with about me?”  He coughed and grimaced, “Yes love, although I seem to remember someone’s mother appearing unexpectedly and making baked goods?”  Vallinya laughed, showing her teeth, “That sounds like my brother.  Which reminds me, this,” she looped an arm through her companion’s own, “is my wife.”</p><p>Cerrebryn straightened instantly, recognizing the woman as one of noble heritage.  She had alabaster skin, something rare among people not of Nordic descent, but her hair was black as ebony.  Something about her stance, or maybe it was the aristocratic chin lift, clued the other woman in.  “Ciri Prevocius at your service.”  She dipped her head, “Lady Cerrebryn Dawnvale.  I’m afraid we didn’t prepare to house a baroness.”  The corner of Ciri’s mouth twisted upward marginally, “I’m sure our lodgings will be more than adequate.</p><p>Ondolemar elbowed his wife, interrupting her strange, upper crust small talk.  “May I let everyone out?”  She smiled, “Would you?  I can get our guests settled in and started on a meal.”  Vallinya stared at her brother, “Children?!  You had children and you didn’t tell me?!”</p><p>He left to go free the children and Cerrebryn lead the couple to a guest room.  She waited outside, reading a letter from Legate Rikke detailing troop movements in Cyrodiil.  Ciri shrieked, “WHAT IS THIS?”  She quickly put away the letter and made her way inside.  Vallinya was unpacking their bags into a set of drawers, her wife was on the edge of the bed, and smack dab in the middle was Bitey the Mudcrab.  “Bitey, you know you’re supposed to stay out of the bedrooms, honestly, you mudcrabs and your space.”</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Hey y'all!<br/>I'm really sorry this hasn't been updated, school has been c r a z y.  This summer I have a job that requires me to live on-site, so it might be a while before I update again.  I swear I haven't forgotten about this.<br/>Did you notice the new conlang?  The Altmer now speak Altmeric, which is a creation of my own!  It's my first conlang and was really fun to start.<br/>In lieu of updating (which still might be possible, it depends on how this summer goes), I'll be posting a little one-shot I wrote a while ago.  Fair warning, I haven't really sat down and edited it yet.<br/>Also, if you notice some changes to Ondolemar's prose, I'm trying to make him more accurate to his appearance in-game.  I speak and write in an American accent, but he's v British so we'll be working on that (which also means changing any of his past dialogue that doesn't quite fit).<br/>Stay safe, you're loved, have a great summer/winter,<br/>-Alice<br/>((Instead of breaking up the flow of the story or commenting translations, all translations (Dunmeris and otherwise) will be here from now on!  This will be promptly updated with all translations.))</p>
        </blockquote><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>For StormBinder: Sorry if you didn't want to be tagged in this, but I thought you might enjoy seeing more of them as a pairing.  Apologies for being so awkward, but anyway, hope you like it!</p><p>Dunmeris: https://casualscrolls.fandom.com/wiki/Dunmeri_language<br/>I hope you enjoy this, it was fun for me to write!  I'm a big nerd for fluff and like pregnancy/family fluff is my shit.<br/>Please leave a comment if you'd like translations of the Dunmeris, I can totally provide rough ones!<br/>Thanks for non-refundable minutes of your life.<br/>You are loved, stay safe, sending hugs,<br/>-Alice</p></blockquote></div></div>
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